Our last day in Beijing
Friday was our last day in Běijīng, so we packed up and checked out of our lovely little hostel. The manager of the hostel spent over an hour helping Peter to set up his Chinese mobile phone number correctly so that it could roam to Hong Kong, and then we all headed just around the corner towards the Lama Temple (Yōnghé Gōng). Lama Temple is Běijīng’s most beautiful Buddhist temple, and is apparently the best-known Tibetan temple outside of Tibet.
Before entering the temple we had a spectacular lunch at a Tibetan restaurant that was just outside, once again reinforcing the diverse range of great food that you can find within China. Liam enjoyed watching a video of Tibetan countryside and culture, while everyone else mostly concentrated on the delicious food!
After lunch we headed to the temple complex itself, where many people were praying and offering incense. Our tour guide to the Great Wall had mentioned a few days ago that the Lama Temple would have been much more busy during the previous week because of high school exams – many Běijīng parents would have been there praying for their child’s success; although she noted that none of the children would be there, because it was important for them to study!
We spent most of the later afternoon at the hostel and met a couple of Australians who were planning to leave Běijīng on an earlier train. While we chatted and played in the hútòng it got progressively steamier and darker, until a heavy and spectacular thunderstorm broke just as the Aussies were leaving for the station.
Fortunately the thunderstorm had mostly passed and the rain had eased by the time we headed out with our suitcases to hail taxis for the train station. We eventually managed to flag down two cabs (who showed their concern for the busy traffic by double-parking!) and then proceed with our weaving drive to the train station through the steamy night.
Běijīng Xī (West Beijing) Station is very large but was quite straightforward to negotiate, with prominent signs in English/Pinyin. We had a very short wait in any case, and then found our way to our 4-bed sleeper cabin on the train. We left the station right on time, with another thunderstorm setting in – so we all enjoyed watching the misty night landscape as it was lit up with stunning purple-tinged flashes. We also ran into some other Australians who were in our carriage, and so Peter stayed up for a drink and a late night chat as we cruised and tooted our way through the rainy night.
Before entering the temple we had a spectacular lunch at a Tibetan restaurant that was just outside, once again reinforcing the diverse range of great food that you can find within China. Liam enjoyed watching a video of Tibetan countryside and culture, while everyone else mostly concentrated on the delicious food!
After lunch we headed to the temple complex itself, where many people were praying and offering incense. Our tour guide to the Great Wall had mentioned a few days ago that the Lama Temple would have been much more busy during the previous week because of high school exams – many Běijīng parents would have been there praying for their child’s success; although she noted that none of the children would be there, because it was important for them to study!
We spent most of the later afternoon at the hostel and met a couple of Australians who were planning to leave Běijīng on an earlier train. While we chatted and played in the hútòng it got progressively steamier and darker, until a heavy and spectacular thunderstorm broke just as the Aussies were leaving for the station.
Fortunately the thunderstorm had mostly passed and the rain had eased by the time we headed out with our suitcases to hail taxis for the train station. We eventually managed to flag down two cabs (who showed their concern for the busy traffic by double-parking!) and then proceed with our weaving drive to the train station through the steamy night.
Běijīng Xī (West Beijing) Station is very large but was quite straightforward to negotiate, with prominent signs in English/Pinyin. We had a very short wait in any case, and then found our way to our 4-bed sleeper cabin on the train. We left the station right on time, with another thunderstorm setting in – so we all enjoyed watching the misty night landscape as it was lit up with stunning purple-tinged flashes. We also ran into some other Australians who were in our carriage, and so Peter stayed up for a drink and a late night chat as we cruised and tooted our way through the rainy night.
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